Overnight news.

Year-round School Plans Put On Hold

February 03, 1999|By Robert R. Smith.

The school board in Carpentersville-based Unit School District 300 backed away Tuesday from adopting year-round schooling as early as July if its construction bond and tax-rate referendums fail April 13.

Meeting in a work session, school board members directed staff to come up with a proposal for reconfiguring schools to handle overcrowding in the 1999-2000 school year.

"I'd like to go back to a step shy of year-round education," said board member John Court. "Can we take a look at next year squeezing seats?"

Possible changes for next year include attendance boundary shifts and shuffling entire grade levels.

Elementary schools in the district are set up for kindergarten through 5th grade. Children in the 6th through 8th grades attend middle schools.

To ease crowding in the lower grades, elementary schools could house pupils through 4th grade, with middle schools taking children in 5th through 8th grades.

Administrators are to present their recommendations for boundary changes at Monday's school board meeting.